mchale2020 Posted May 9, 2012 Report Share Posted May 9, 2012 Hey everyone, I just registered on the forum and wanted to introduce myself. I've been riding for about six years now and have gotten to the point where I feel 'stuck' where I'm at at track days. I think it's time to make some changes in how I approach how I want to improve my riding and I'm really interested in taking a class with California Superbike. It sounds like you guys have some really talented instructors and a helpful curriculum to assist riders. I know when I felt like I had hit a brick wall before, I read Twist of the Wrist II and it helped me take a more scientific approach to steering my bike. I hope to chat with the staff on CS on the forum, it sounds like a great place to be! I know I have a lot of room for improvement, but I thought I would share this picture with other members for my introduction post. Jordan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
faffi Posted May 10, 2012 Report Share Posted May 10, 2012 Welcome to the fold. In order to improve, you probably need to step out of your comfort zone and try new things - repeating the same thing ad nauseum tend to bring little but stagnation. Sounds like you are heading in the right direction with your attitude. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
comptonchinee Posted May 10, 2012 Report Share Posted May 10, 2012 Hi, and Welcome!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
warregl Posted May 10, 2012 Report Share Posted May 10, 2012 Welcome to the forum Jordan. I think you will be very happy with the input from the coaches and the knowledge from the lectures. And if you are not sure, just read some of the posts the coaches write. That will give you some insight into how they coach, how valuable the information is, and how much they truely love helping riders improve. So tell us a bit more about you. What areas do you feel you need to improve on? Do you know where you want to focus or are you looking to break a lap time barrier? What are your current goals? Where do you like to ride, any favorite tracks? Best, Carey Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mchale2020 Posted May 10, 2012 Author Report Share Posted May 10, 2012 Thank you so much for the warm welcome! It's hard to put a finger on the skills I know need to develop when at a distance a lot of the issues feels so abstract. I think one problem is when I know I need to make the effort to take a safe step outside of my comfort barrier at a track day, I get this timid feeling that sort of holds me back. Sometimes it might be that I'll get held up in traffic and I'm afraid of 'spooking' another rider or blowing a safe braking point, so I'll just wait to enter the hot pit to let traffic go by, which adds up to a lot of time lost lap-after-lap. Or maybe I get placed in a group with a control rider that doesn't pay a lot of attention to maintaining a tight formation as per club rules, so I spend more time looking at the bike in front of me, worrying that I'm not doing a good job for the rest of the group, and less time going 'widescreen' with my vision and developing solid reference points that improve smoothness and consistency. Instances like that really discourage me because it's supposed to be the 'slower' part of the day to help set the foundation for when the pace is picked up in later sessions and if you start your day on the wrong foot for whatever reason, it's really difficult to recover and make improvements, especially if you're trying to safely navigate traffic. I think what it boils down to is that I would really like to become more consistent with how I improve and believing I have a strong skill set to back myself up every time I go out on the track to make that effort to be better and not feel like I'm leaving all these really crucial elements to chance. Anyway, I hope I don't sound like I've been rambling. I really appreciate you guys taking the time to ask me questions. That in itself is very helpful. Cheers! Jordan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
warregl Posted May 10, 2012 Report Share Posted May 10, 2012 Jordan, This comment from your post really stuck out to me because as they say "Knowledge is Power". Getting a grounded education in the fundamentals and spending time with the coaches will help you with identifying the skills that need developing. Then the stepping out of the comfort zone is a bit less daunting, since it is a calculated step based on an understanding on where you are vs where you want to be. Are you thinking about attending CSS this season? Best, Carey Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mchale2020 Posted May 10, 2012 Author Report Share Posted May 10, 2012 Hey warregl, I would like to ride with CSS at Barbers this coming June, assuming it's not too late to sign up. I have the means to pay for my one day tuition if I can still join the school for the Saturday ride. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crash106 Posted May 11, 2012 Report Share Posted May 11, 2012 Welcome to the forum. Nice photo--you look pretty comfortable on that bike. Sometimes it is hard to know what you are doing wrong, but a good coach will spot it right away. You can also learn a lot just from riding behind better riders. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mchale2020 Posted May 11, 2012 Author Report Share Posted May 11, 2012 Thanks for the kind words Crash. I submitted my registration for Barber's this June so I hope I can get a spot in the program. I'm about to start engineering school and I know it's going to consume a lot of my free time... and sanity, thus it would be so valuable to me pick up the skills I need to make safe and consistent improvements on the track, even when circumstances don't exactly go according to plan. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
warregl Posted May 11, 2012 Report Share Posted May 11, 2012 Good luck, I hope you are able to get a slot at Barber. I think you will be most happy you signed up. And good luck with the engineering, calculus 3 was enough for me. What kind of engineering are you studying? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mchale2020 Posted May 11, 2012 Author Report Share Posted May 11, 2012 Thanks warregl! I've heard back from the registration office and am hoping to get the details worked out for CSS. I 'll be studying Electrical Engineering at the University of Alabama in Huntsville. I won't spill my whole life story, but I think I have an experience to talk about that relates to this thread. When I was in high school, I was never able to get the help or direction that I needed to succeed in my math classes, so my grades were mediocre and I just accepted that I was 'bad' at math. When I graduated from high school, I just worked a lot because it felt like it distanced me from the challenges I would face at a college if I pursued Engineering, which is what I really wanted to do but just didn't have the self-esteem. Eventually I got laid off and decided I didn't have much choice but to attend school, so I earned a technical degree in Electronics engineering. This made me reconsider my approach to math and when I started taking Trig and Calculus classes, I decided to re-evaluate my attitude towards math and how I prepared for the material. It payed off with a scholarship I received and even though it about killed me, I made a 99 in my Differential Equations class this semester. The life lesson I learned is their really isn't such a thing as being 'good' or 'bad', just sometimes we have to change the way we approach challenges we might have not succeeded at initially. In relation to riding, I feel like the words 'fast' and 'slow' are four letter words that riders sometimes get hung up on and end up missing the big picture of just improving, especially if this is something you want to do for the rest of your life as a hobby. Sorry if I went off on a wild tangent. I forgot to mention I really enjoy riding at Barber's Motorsports Park. I've ridden at TGPR too, but the elevation changes at Barber just make for such an entertaining ride. Good luck, I hope you are able to get a slot at Barber. I think you will be most happy you signed up. And good luck with the engineering, calculus 3 was enough for me. What kind of engineering are you studying? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
khp Posted May 11, 2012 Report Share Posted May 11, 2012 Thanks warregl! I've heard back from the registration office and am hoping to get the details worked out for CSS. I 'll be studying Electrical Engineering at the University of Alabama in Huntsville. I won't spill my whole life story, but (snippage) Sorry if I went off on a wild tangent. I forgot to mention I really enjoy riding at Barber's Motorsports Park. I've ridden at TGPR too, but the elevation changes at Barber just make for such an entertaining ride. Congrats on getting into EE school. I'm a recovering EE (I got into management instead, so I joined The Dark Side) and there are several other Engineers hanging around in the forums. And having helped a couple of students with uni prep courses for advanced math, I can tell that there's huge difference between how people learn math the best way. Unfortunately, the high school teachers are not always those who are the best at learning math to youngsters. But huge hat's off to your feat, and I hope your success at DE will keep your motivation going (EE match can be a b***ch). Oh, and welcome to the forum and hopefully to CSS. Kai Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hotfoot Posted May 11, 2012 Report Share Posted May 11, 2012 Thanks warregl! I've heard back from the registration office and am hoping to get the details worked out for CSS. I 'll be studying Electrical Engineering at the University of Alabama in Huntsville. I won't spill my whole life story, but (snippage) Sorry if I went off on a wild tangent. I forgot to mention I really enjoy riding at Barber's Motorsports Park. I've ridden at TGPR too, but the elevation changes at Barber just make for such an entertaining ride. Congrats on getting into EE school. I'm a recovering EE (I got into management instead, so I joined The Dark Side) and there are several other Engineers hanging around in the forums. And having helped a couple of students with uni prep courses for advanced math, I can tell that there's huge difference between how people learn math the best way. Unfortunately, the high school teachers are not always those who are the best at learning math to youngsters. But huge hat's off to your feat, and I hope your success at DE will keep your motivation going (EE match can be a b***ch). Oh, and welcome to the forum and hopefully to CSS. Kai Me, too (recovering EE, now in management). Welcome, Jordan! Hope to see you at Barber, I love that track, too. Sounds like the CSS course will be perfect for you, it is a great way to improve your control of the motorcycle and thus your confidence, and that will certainly help sort out the frustrations you mentioned in your first post. I'm sure you'll have a blast, just make sure you don't get so hooked that you want to spend all your study time at the racetrack! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
warregl Posted May 17, 2012 Report Share Posted May 17, 2012 Thanks warregl! I've heard back from the registration office and am hoping to get the details worked out for CSS. I 'll be studying Electrical Engineering at the University of Alabama in Huntsville.... Great story Jordan. You should be proud. Let us know if you manage to get to CSS, we love hearing how people feel after being introduced to CSS on the track. And good luck in school (not that is sounds like you will be needing it). Best, Carey Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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